


because i know no other way

by sameboots



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Jaime Lannister: best hs boyfriend, Valentine's Day, jaime lannister: human disaster
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-14
Updated: 2020-02-14
Packaged: 2021-02-27 20:08:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,454
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22721476
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sameboots/pseuds/sameboots
Summary: Jaime wants to give Brienne the perfect Valentine's Day, but Brienne's perfect Valentine's Day requires careful balancing of demonstration and restraint.--Jaime ends up holding onto the flowers and waiting for her to show up. She raises an eyebrow when she finds him there before her. He catches her hand before she sits in the desk next to his, tugging her down to him. He presses the flowers into her other hand where no one else can really see and whispers, “Happy Valentine’s Day.”Her eyes widen just a fraction as she stares down at the little bunch of flowers. A small smile ticks the corner of her mouth.“Happy Valentine’s Day,” she whispers back before sitting.She keeps the flowers in her lap, but he keeps glancing over to see the way she strokes the stems between her fingers like she can’t quite let go of them even if she wants to keep them secret.
Relationships: Jaime Lannister/Brienne of Tarth
Comments: 82
Kudos: 285





	because i know no other way

**Author's Note:**

> Written on my lunch break at work. 
> 
> Unbeta'd. Popped into my head out of nowhere. 
> 
> ENJOY?

The best part of _dating_ Brienne and not just being her best friend is one-thousand-percent being able to loudly declare how much he _completely loves her_. Which means that Valentine’s Day is like snorting an entire eight-ball of joy and happiness. He finally has an excuse to be the most profligate, disgustingly demonstrative boyfriend of all time and he’s _ready_. 

\--

Step 1: Flowers

It doesn’t take much cajoling since Catelyn loves Brienne more than she hates anyone, all it really takes is one emoji-laden, please text message for her to agree to assist Jaime in giving Brienne The Best Valentine’s Day Ever, so long as it involved absolutely nothing that may humiliate her.

Jaime does point out that Brienne is the most easily embarrassed person that either of them has ever met and therefore any amount of attention may cause her to feel on the verge of humiliation and he just really, really, really _needs_ , in his _soul_ , to explain to the entire world how awesome she is. 

His phone shows the Ellipses of Doom for so long that Jaime starts to think maybe Catelyn is composing an essay about how thoughtless and shitty he is.

Instead, all he receives back is _I get veto power_.

All he sends back isa row of party hat emojis. 

Catelyn agrees that a _posy_ of flowers is acceptable; an entire bouquet or vase waiting on her first period desk would mortify her. 

Briefly, Jaime is racked with panic over what _kind_ of flower to get her, remembering the cruel incident in sixth grade with that fucknut Ron Connington. He ends up getting a little bunch of yellow daisies. He’s about to drop them on top of the desk when the panic hits. Brienne still has moments of--of thinking that people are going to be cruel, even though they’ve mostly let her alone since Jaime broke Ron’s nose. 

Well, and since Jaime started dating her and all but daring any single person to _think_ about _looking_ at her sideways.

He ends up holding onto the flowers and waiting for her to show up. She raises an eyebrow when she finds him there before her. He catches her hand before she sits in the desk next to his, tugging her down to him. He presses the flowers into her other hand where no one else can really see and whispers, “Happy Valentine’s Day.”

Her eyes widen just a fraction as she stares down at the little bunch of flowers. A small smile ticks the corner of her mouth.

“Happy Valentine’s Day,” she whispers back before sitting. 

She keeps the flowers in her lap, but he keeps glancing over to see the way she strokes the stems between her fingers like she can’t quite let go of them even if she wants to keep them secret. 

\--

Step 2: Candy

He brings a bag of Hershey Kisses and hides them in his locker, passing them to her one-by-one throughout the day. Any time he would kiss her for real, he passes her a chocolate. After the first five, she finally asks, “What’s with the Kisses?”

“I didn’t think you would let me kiss you in front of everyone,” he explains, leaning against the locker next to hers. “So every time I want to, I give you a Kiss.”

She flushes a deep pink. She’s complained before about the splotchy, ‘hive-like’ appearance of her blush, instead of the delicate, sweet expression Catelyn can achieve. Jaime managed to refrain from explaining that one of his favorite things about her is how not-delicate she is physically and how sweet she is inside, because he feels like he can be man-handled by a really, really hot teddy bear and it _ruins_ his composure to the point of mortification constantly.

She glances around as if looking for someone and then leans in and gives him the quickest peck on the lips he’s ever received. 

It feels even better than winning the championship game last year, because he _knows_ how hard that was for her. He hopes she can read that in his smile. 

\--

Step 3: _Words of Affirmation_

As per Catelyn’s last text message, the thing Brienne secretly wants the most is the reassurance that Jaime really does want to be with her. Not physically, not with stupid little trinkets or gifts, not with some grand gesture or singing telegram, just with those casual little asides that make her feel a touch more confident in his love with every repetition.

She’d called them _Words of Affirmation_ and told Jaime he should take this test about love languages and she would make Brienne take it and Jaime had definitely zoned out around that point. He _thinks_ he tells Brienne all the time how much he likes her, loves her, is so into her it makes his brain feel like it’s on fire and melting and his heart is too big for his chest and sometimes he thinks maybe he might have to go to the hospital for priapism.

(She’d narrowed her eyes at him and even through the furious blush managed to _judgily_ ask what in the name of the gods he’d searched online to come up with priapism.)

At any rate, on the drive home, he takes her hand even when she tries to tell him ten-and-two. They go to her house because Cersei and Tyrion and housekeepers, and because her dad won’t be home for a few hours. She even lets him in her room, guides him to her bed, and lies down on top of him because she has no regard for how hard it is for him not to come in his pants at all times. 

_He’s_ the dumbass whimpering when she finally pulls away to gaze down at him, brush the curls away from his temple and say, “I love you.”

It’s not the first time she’s said it, not the tenth, probably not the fiftieth, but every _single_ time it’s like fireworks in his entire body. 

“I love you, too,” he says, tilting up to kiss her again. 

She pulls away before his lips connect to hers. He whines before he sees the look on her face, uncomfortable and tense.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing,” she says quickly. “Nothing. It’s only...I know I’m not the perfect girlfriend. I’m not always--”

“You’re _absolutely_ the perfect girlfriend,” he says emphatically. “Why would you say that?”

She shrugs, looking off to the side. “I know you wish I would let you be more affectionate and that I don’t put out or whatever.”

Jaime has no idea what to say, not even sure where any of this is coming from or--

“Brienne, look at me please.” He waits patiently until she draws a deep breath and meets his eyes again, her own darkened with worry. “I don’t want you to be or do anything you don’t want to do. Sure, I want to kiss you and yell in the streets and the halls and from the rooftops _that’s my girlfriend and I love her so much_. And am I almost problematically hard ninety percent of the time? Sure. But--but I don’t care? I just want you. I only want you and you’re you and that’s what I love.”

She closes her eyes like she might cry which is the absolute last thing he wanted to happen. She drops her face to his neck and rests more of her weight on him, more than she normally allows herself. He wraps his arms around her back and just holds her until she relaxes more. 

“I’m sorry,” she mutters into his shoulder. 

“Why are you _sorry_?”

“For ruining Valentine’s with all this mess,” she says. “I’m still not good at believing this is really happening to me of all people.”

It’s his turn to sigh. He reaches up to card his fingers through her hair and cups her cheek with his other hand until she lifts her head to look down at him, her face still splotchy. She lets him kiss her this time. 

“You haven’t ruined Valentine’s Day,” he says gently. “You’re still with me. The only way you could ruin Valentine’s Day is if you broke up with me.” 

She snorts. “I’m sure I could manage some other way.”

“Doubtful,” he argues. “Because either way, I get to be with you tomorrow again.”

“I can never decide if I want to roll my eyes or cry when you say stuff like that.”

“You don’t have to choose,” he says with a grin.

She smiles back and kisses him again, open-mouthed and wonderful and when he pulls on her, she rests as much weight as he wants her to on top of him. 

It’s bliss. 

**Author's Note:**

> Oh, and thank you to John Mulaney for inspo for "that's my girlfriend and I love her so much."


End file.
